The USS Steele (BDE-8/DE-8) was an Evarts-class destroyer escort laid down on January 27, 1942, and launched on January 9, the following year. It was commissioned on May 4, 1943, under Lt. Comdr. Mark E. Dennett’s command with the hull number DE-8 and served in the U.S. Navy for 2 years until it was decommissioned on November 21, 1945. During its activities, the ship carried a complement of 198 people on board and had its main missions in California, Boston, Kusaie Island, the Solomons, Majuro, Peleliu, Tarawa, Leyte, Eniwetok, San Pedro, Apra Harbor, Saipan, Ulithi, and the Philippines. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on December 5, 1945. For the services brought to the country during World War II, the USS Steele received 2 battle stars. In the years before and during World War II, thousands of naval shipyard workers were subjected to asbestos exposure at high levels. These men and women include Navy personnel who served on naval vessels between 1930 and 1980 and military personnel and civilians who spent months, often years, building and repairing the ships in Navy shipyards.
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